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Salam and Istisna

By Maulana Taqi Usmani

“SALAM AND ISTISNA”


By Maulana Taqi Usmani

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

SALAM AND ISTISNA’

It is one of the basic conditions for the validity of a sale in Shari’ah that the commodity
(intended to be sold) must be in the physical or constructive possession of the seller.

This condition has three ingredients:

Firstly, the commodity must be existing; therefore, a commodity which does not exist at
the time of sale cannot be sold.

Secondly, the seller should have acquired the ownership of that commodity. Therefore, if
the commodity is existing, but the seller does not own it, he cannot sell it to anybody.

Thirdly, mere ownership is not enough. It should have come in to the possession of the
seller, either physically or constructively. If the seller owns a commodity, but he has not
taken its delivery himself or through an agent, he cannot sell it.

There are only two exceptions to this general principle in Shari’ah. One is Salam and the
other is Istisna’. Both are sales of a special nature, and in the present chapter the concept
of these two kinds of sale and the extent to which they can be used for the purpose of
financing will be explained.

Meaning of Salam:
Salam is a sale whereby the seller undertakes to supply some specific goods to the buyer
at a future date in exchange of an advanced price fully paid at spot.

Here the price is cash, but the supply of the purchased goods is deferred. The buyer is
called “rabb-us-salam”, the seller “muslam ilaih”, the cash price is “ra’s-ul-mal” and
the purchased commodity is termed as “muslam fih”, but for the purpose of simplicity, I
shall use the English synonyms of these terms.

Salam was allowed by the Holy Prophet (SW) subject to certain conditions. The basic
purpose of this sale was to meet the needs of small farmers who needed money to grow
their crops and to feed their families upto the time of harvest. After the prohibition of
riba, they could not take usurious loans. Therefore, it was allowed for them to sell the
agricultural products in advance.

Similarly, the traders of Arabia used to export goods to other places and to import some
other goods to their homeland. They needed money to undertake this type of business.
They could not borrow from the userers after the prohibition of riba. It was, therefore,
allowed for them that they sell the goods in advance. After receiving their cash price,
they could easily undertake the aforesaid business.

Salam was beneficial to the seller, because he received the price in advance, and it was
beneficial to the buyer also, because normally, the price in salam used to be lower than
the price in spot sales.

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

The permissibility of salam was an exception to the general rule that prohibits the
forward sales, and therefore, it was subjected to some strict conditions.

These conditions are summarized below:

Conditions of Salam:
1. First of all, it is necessary for the validity of salam that the buyer pays the price in full
to the seller at the time of effecting the sale. It is necessary because in the absence of full
payment by the buyer, it will be tantamount to sale of a debt against a debt, which is
expressly prohibited by the Holy Prophet (SW).

Moreover, the basic wisdom behind the permissibility of salam is to fulfill the instant
needs of the seller. If the price is not paid to him in full, the basic purpose of the
transaction will be defeated.

Therefore, all the Muslim jurists are unanimous on the point that full payment of the price
is necessary in Salam. However, Imam Malik is of the view that the seller may give a
concession of two or three days to the buyers, but this concession should not form part of
the agreement.

2. Salam can be affected in those commodities only the quality and quantity of which can
be specified exactly. The things whose quality or quantity is not determined by
specification cannot be sold through the contract of salam. For example, precious stones
cannot be sold on the basis of salam, because every piece of precious stones is normally
different from the other either in its quality or in its size or weight and their exact
specification is not generally possible.

3. Salam cannot be affected on a particular commodity or on a product of a particular


field or farm. For example, if the seller undertakes to supply the wheat of a particular
field, or the fruit of a particular tree, the salam will not be valid, because there is a
possibility that the crop of that particular field or the fruit of that tree is destroyed before
delivery, and, given such possibility, the delivery remains uncertain. The same rule is
applicable to every commodity the supply of which is not certain.

4. It is necessary that the quality of the commodity (intended to be purchased through


salam) is fully specified leaving no ambiguity which may lead to a dispute. All the
possible details in this respect must be expressly mentioned.

5. It is also necessary that the quantity of the commodity is agreed upon in unequivocal
terms. If the commodity is quantified in weights according to the usage of its traders, its
weight must be determined, and if it is quantified through measures, its exact measure
should be known. What is normally weighed cannot be quantified in measures and vice
versa.

6. The exact date and place of delivery must be specified in the contract.

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

7. Salam cannot be affected in respect of things which must be delivered at spot. For
example, if gold is purchased in exchange of silver, it is necessary, according to Shari’ah,
that the delivery of both be simultaneous.

Here, salam cannot work. Similarly, if wheat is bartered for barley, the simultaneous
delivery of both is necessary for the validity of sale. Therefore the contract of salam in
this case is not allowed.

All the Muslim jurists are unanimous on the principle that salam will not be valid unless
all these conditions are fully observed, because they are based on the express ahadith of
the Holy Prophet (SW). The most famous hadith in this context is the one which the Holy
Prophet (SW) has said:

“Whoever wishes to enter into a contract of salam, he must effect the Salam according to
the specified measure and the specified weight and the specified date of delivery.”

However, there are certain other conditions which have been a point of difference
between the different schools of the Islamic jurisprudence.

Some of these conditions are discussed below:

1. It is necessary, according to the Hanafi school, that the commodity (for which salam is
effected) remains available in the market right from the day of contract upto the date of
delivery. Therefore, if a commodity is not available in the market at the time of the
contract, salam cannot be affected in respect of that commodity, even though it is
expected that it will be available in the markets at the date of the delivery.

However, the other three schools of Fiqh (i.e. Shafi’, Maliki, and Hanbali) are of the view
that the availability of the commodity at the time of the contract is not a condition for the
validity of salam. What is necessary, according to them, is that it should be available at
the time of delivery.

This view can be adopted in the present circumstances.

2. It is necessary, according to the Hanafi and Hanbali schools that the time of delivery is,
at least, one month from the date of agreement. If the time of delivery is fixed earlier than
one month, salam is not valid. Their argument is that salam has been allowed for the
needs of small farmers and traders and therefore, they should be given enough
opportunity to acquire the commodity. They may not be able to supply the commodity
before one month. Moreover, the price in salam is normally lower than the price in spot
sales. This concession in the price may be justified only when the commodities are
delivered after a period which has a reasonable bearing on the prices. A period of less
than one month does not normally affect the prices. Therefore, the minimum time of
delivery should not be less than one month.

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

Imam Malik supports the view that there should be a minimum period for the contract of
salam. However, he is of the opinion that it should not be less than fifteen days, because
the rates of the market may change within a fortnight.

This view is, however, opposed by some other jurists, like Imam Shafi’ and some Hanafi
jurists also. They say that the Holy Prophet (SW) has not specified a minimum period for
the validity of salam. The only condition, according to the Hadith, is that the time of
delivery must be clearly defined. Therefore, no minimum period can be prescribed. The
parties may fix any date for delivery with mutual consent.

This view seems to be preferable in the present circumstances, because the Holy Prophet
(SW) has not prescribed a minimum period. The jurists have prescribed different periods
which range between one day to one month. It is obvious that they have done so on the
basis of expedience and keeping in view the interest of the poor sellers. But the
expediency may differ from time to time and from place to place. Likewise, sometimes it
is more in the interest of the seller to fix an earlier date. As far as the price is concerned,
it is not a necessary ingredient of salam that the price is always lower than the market
price on that day. The seller himself is the best judge of his interest, and if he accepts an
earlier date of delivery with his free will and consent, there is no reason why he should be
forbidden from doing so.

Certain contemporary jurists have adopted this view being more suitable for the modern
transactions.

Salam as a Mode of Financing:


It is evident from the foregoing discussion that salam was allowed by Shari’ah to fulfill
the needs of farmers and traders. Therefore, it is basically a mode of financing for small
farmers and traders. This mode of financing can be used by the modern banks and
financial institutions, especially to finance the agricultural sector. As pointed out earlier,
the price in salam may be fixed at a lower rate than the price of those commodities
delivered at spot. In this way, the difference between the two prices may be a valid profit
for the banks or financial institutions. In order to ensure that the seller shall deliver the
commodity on the agreed date, they can also ask him to furnish a security, which may be
in the form of a guarantee or in the form of a mortgage or hypothecation. In the case of
default in delivery, the guarantor may be asked to deliver the same commodity, and if
there is a mortgage, the buyer / financier can sell the mortgaged property and the sale
proceeds can be used either to realize the required commodity by purchasing it from the
market or to recover the price advanced by him.

The only problem in salam which may agitate the modern banks and financial institutions
is that they will receive certain commodities from their clients, and will not receive
money. Being conversant with dealing in money only, it seems to be cumbersome for
them to receive different commodities from different clients and to sell them in the
market. They cannot sell these commodities before they are actually delivered to them,
because it is prohibited in Shari’ah.

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

But whenever we talk about the Islamic modes of financing, one basic point should never
be ignored. The point is that the concept of the financial institutions dealing in money
only is foreign to Islamic Shari’ah. If these institutions want to earn a halal profit, they
shall have to deal in commodities in one way or the other, because no profit is allowed in
Shari’ah on advancing loans only. Therefore, the establishment of an Islamic economy
requires a basic change in the approach and in the outlook of the financial institutions.
They shall have to establish a special cell for dealing in commodities. If such a special
cell is established, it should not be difficult to purchase commodities through salam and
to sell them in the spot markets.

However, there are two other ways of benefitting from the contract of Salam.

Firstly, after purchasing a commodity by way of salam, the financial institutions may sell
it through a parallel contract of salam for the same date of delivery. The period of salam
in the second (parallel) transaction being shorter, the price may be a little higher than the
price of the first transaction, and the difference between the two prices shall be the profit
earned by the institution. The shorter the period of salam, the higher the price and the
greater the profit. In this way the institutions may manage their short term financing
portfolios.

Secondly, if a parallel contract of salam is not feasible for one reason or another, they can
obtain a promise to purchase from a third party. This promise should be unilateral from
the expected buyer. Being merely a promise, and not the actual sale, their buyers will not
have to pay the price in advance. Therefore, a higher price may be fixed and as soon as
the commodity is received by the institution, it will be sold to the third party at a pre-
agreed price, according to the terms of the promise.

A third option is sometimes proposed that, at the date of delivery, the commodity is sold
back to the seller at a higher price. But this suggestion is not in line with the dictates of
Shari’ah. It is never permitted by the Shari’ah that the purchased commodity is sold back
to the seller before the buyer takes its delivery, and if it is done at a higher price it will be
tantamount to riba which is totally prohibited. Even if it is sold back to the seller after
taking delivery from him, it cannot be prearranged at the time of original sale. Therefore,
this proposal is not acceptable at all.

Some Rules of Parallel Salam:


Since the modern Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions are using the instrument of
parallel Salam, some rules for the validity of this arrangement are necessary to observe:

1. In an arrangement of parallel salam, the bank enters two different contracts. In one of
them, the bank is the buyer and in the second one the bank is the seller. Each one of these
contracts must be independent of the other. They cannot be tied up in a manner that the
rights and obligations of one contact are dependent on the rights and obligations of the
parallel contract. Each contract should have its own force and its performance should not
be contingent on the other.

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

For Example, if A has purchased from B 1000 bags of wheat by way of Salam to be
delivered on 31 December, A can contract a parallel Salam with C to deliver to him 1000
bags of wheat on 31 December. But while contracting Parallel Salam with C, the delivery
of wheat to C cannot be conditioned with taking delivery from B. Therefore, even if B
did not deliver wheat on 31 December, A is duty bound to deliver 1000 bags of wheat to
C. He can seek whatever recourse he has against B, but he cannot rid himself from his
liability to deliver wheat to C.

Similarly, if B has delivered defective goods which do not conform with the agreed
specifications, A is still obligated to deliver the goods to C according to the specifications
agreed with him.

2. Parallel Salam is allowed with a third party only. The seller in the first contract cannot
be made purchaser in the parallel contract of salam, because it will be a buy-back
contract, which is not permissible in Shari’ah.

Even if the purchaser in the second contract is a separate legal entity, but it is fully owned
by the seller in the first contract the arrangement will not be allowed, because in practical
terms it will amount to ‘buy-back’ arrangement. For example A has purchased 1000 bags
of wheat by way of Salam from B, a joint stock company. B has a subsidiary C, which is
a separate legal entity but is fully owned by B. A cannot contract the parallel salam with
C. However, if C is not wholly owned by B, A can contract parallel salam with it, even if
some shareholders are common between B and C.

ISTISNA’
‘Istisna’ is the second kind of sale where a commodity is transacted before it comes into
existence. It means to order a manufacturer to manufacture a specific commodity for the
purchaser. If the manufacturer undertakes to manufacture the goods for him with material
from the manufacturer, the transaction of istisna’ comes into existence. But it is
necessary for the validity of istisna’ that the price is fixed with the consent of the parties
and that necessary specification of the commodity (intended to be manufactured) is fully
settled between them.

The contract of istisna’ creates a moral obligation on the manufacturer to manufacture the
goods, but before he starts the work, any one of the parties may cancel the contract after
giving a notice to the other. However after the manufacturer has started the work, the
contract cannot be cancelled unilaterally.

Difference between Istisna’ and Salam:


Keeping in view this nature of istisna’ there are several points of difference between
istisna’ and salam which are summarized below:

i. The subject of istisna’ is always a thing which needs manufacturing, while salam can
be affected on any thing, no matter whether it needs manufacturing or not.

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

ii. It is necessary for salam that the price is paid in full in advance, while it is not
necessary in istisna’.

iii. The contract of salam, once affected, cannot be cancelled unilaterally, while the
contract of istisna’ can be cancelled before the manufacturer starts the work.

iv. The time of delivery is an essential part of the sale in salam while it is not necessary in
istisna’ that the time of delivery is fixed.

Difference between Istisna’ and Ijarah:


It should also be kept in mind that the manufacturer, in istisna’ undertakes to make the
required goods with his own material. Therefore, this transaction implies that the
manufacturer shall obtain the material, if it is not already with him, and shall undertake
the work required for making the ordered goods with it. If the material is provided by the
customer, and the manufacturer is required to use his labour and skill only, the
transaction is not istisna’. In this case it will be a transaction of ijarah whereby the
services of a person are hired for a specific fee paid to him.

When the required goods have been manufactured by the seller, he should present them
to the purchaser. But there is a difference of opinion among the Muslim jurists whether or
not the purchaser has a right to reject the goods at this stage. Imam Abu Hanifah is of the
view that he can exercise his ‘option of seeing’ (khiyar-ur-ru’yah) after seeing the goods,
because istisna’ is a sale and if somebody purchases a thing which is not seen by him, he
has the option to cancel the sale after seeing it. The same principle is also applicable to
istisna’.

However, Imam Abu Yousuf says that if the commodity conforms to the specifications
agreed upon between the parties at the time of the contract, the purchaser is bound to
accept the goods and he cannot exercise the option of seeing.

This view has been preferred by the jurists of the Ottoman Empire, and the Hanafi law
has been codified according to this view, because it is damaging in the context of modern
trade and industry that after the manufacturer has used all his resources to prepare the
required goods, the purchaser cancels the sale without assigning any reason, even though
the goods are in full conformity with the required specifications.

Time of Delivery:
As pointed out earlier, it is not necessary in istisna’ that the time of delivery is fixed.
However, the purchaser may fix a maximum time for delivery which means that if the
manufacturer delays the delivery after the appointed time, he will not be bound to accept
the goods and pay the price.

In order to ensure that the goods will be delivered within the specified period, some
modern agreements of this nature contain a penal clause to the effect that in case the
manufacturer delays the delivery after the appointed time, he shall be liable to a penalty
which shall be calculated on a daily basis. Can such a penal clause be inserted in a

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

contract of istisna’ according to Shari’ah? Although the classical jurists seem to be silent
about this question while they discuss the contract of istisna’, yet they have allowed a
similar condition in the case of ijarah. They say that if a person hires the services of a
person to tailor his clothes, the fee may be variable according to the time of delivery.
The hirer may say that he will pay Rs.100/- in case the tailor prepares the clothes within
one day and Rs. 80/- in case he prepares them after two days.

On the same analogy, the price in istisna’ may be tied up with the time of delivery, and it
will be permissible if it is agreed between the parties that in the case of delay in delivery,
the price shall be reduced by a specified amount per day.

Istisna’ as a Mode of Financing:


Istisna’ can be used for providing the facility of financing in certain transaction,
especially in the house finance sector.

If the client has his own land and he seeks financing for the construction of a house, the
financier may undertake to construct the house at that open land, on the basis of istisna’,
and if the client has no land and he wants to purchase the land also, the financier may
undertake to provide him a constructed house in a specified piece of land.

Since it is not necessary in istisna’ that the price is paid in advance, nor is it necessary
that it is paid at the time of delivery, (it may deferred at any time according to the
agreement of the parties), therefore, the time of payment may be fixed in whatever
manner they wish. The payment may also be in installments.

On the other hand, it is not necessary that the financier himself constructs the house. He
can enter into a parallel contract of istisna’ with a third party, or may hire the services of
a contractor (other than the client). In both cases, he can calculate his cost and fix the
price of istisna’ with his client in a manner which may give him a reasonable profit over
his cost. The payment of installments by the client may start, in this case, right from the
day when the contract of istisna’ is signed by the parties, and may continue during the
construction of the house and after it is handed over to the client. In order to secure the
payment of the installments, the title deeds of the house or land, or any other property of
the client may be kept by the financier as a security, until the last installment is paid by
the client.

The financier, in this case, will be responsible for the construction of the house in full
conformity with the specifications detailed in the agreement. In the case of any
discrepancy, the financier will undertake such alteration at his own cost as may be
necessary for bringing it in harmony with the terms of the contract.

The instrument of istisna’ may also be used for project financing on similar lines. If a
client wants to install an air conditioning plant in his factory, and the plant needs to be
manufactured, the financier may undertake to prepare the plant the contract of istisna’
according to the aforesaid procedure. Similarly, the contract of istisna’ can be used for
building a bridge or a highway.

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Salam and Istisna
By Maulana Taqi Usmani

The modern BOT (Buy, Operate and Transfer) agreements may also be formalized on the
basis of istisna’. If a government wants to construct a highway, it may enter into a
contract of istisna’ with a builder. The price of istisna’, in this case, may be the right of
the builder to operate the highway and collect tolls for a specified period.

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